


Truce Love

by InkyOverlord



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Graphic Injury, Hanahaki Disease, M/M, Sibling Incest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:27:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27160439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InkyOverlord/pseuds/InkyOverlord
Summary: Nightmare has fallen ill and its up to Dream to figure out why he's so hesitant on help
Relationships: Dreammare, dream sans/nightmare sans, nightdream, sans/sans
Comments: 6
Kudos: 111





	Truce Love

“ **You need to fix this now** ”

Dream hadn’t even gotten the chance to fully comprehend the situation ,pulling himself back from the initial shock of having one of his enemies summon a portal right in his face while he’s in the middle of filing his taxes.

He blinks in response,pen still in hand,”I’m sorry—what?”

“ **You heard me Dreamcatcher!** ” The well know puppeteer of destruction snapped,bearing his yellow fangs,” **I can’t believe I’m saying this—again but your brother is in danger and we need your help** ”

“Wait Error—why my help?” He was certainly confused since he couldn’t think of a single reason that he might need him.

“ **Look it’s hard to explain so get your ass in here or else!** ” The glitch retorts and before Dream could answer him,Error grabbed him by the wrists and dragged him through it.

Dream could barely process the situation until his poor skull came into contact with the floor.

“Ack—!”

Distorted,it takes a bit of energy for him to fully stop his head from spinning,groaning as a pair of black slippers finally came into view.

“Couldn’t you at least Be abit more gentle with him?” Another voice comes within earshot,While oddly calm,comes off as pretty passive aggressive.

“ **Uhhh last time I checked,you enjoy my roughness** ” Error replies in a jokingly flirting way,to which the other voice scoffed.

The lighter guardian manages to pull himself up and take a proper view of the situation,once his vision cleared up—each member of his brother’s gang came into view,surrounding him in an intimidating manner.

“Well the most I can ask from you is to not kill him” Dust adds,holding a clipboard firmly on his grip.

He stands himself upright,holding his jarred head,”Uh sorry to butt in but what’s going on?”

Dust sighs,tenseness hiding in his voice,seemingly not wanting to explain the situation,”let’s say your brother is..suffering from a serious illness”

Once the words reach into his head,his eyes widen as his hands formed shaky fist,”I—what kind of illness?”

The squad of baddies glanced at each other,already making Dream feel more uneasy in the stomach about this situation.However it’s Dust who steps up once more to explain.

“It’s best—that you see it for yourself” His voice cracks as he anxiously taps his fingers against the clipboard,this makes Dream realize how serious this issue is and how much the team is struggling to pull themselves together.

A sinking feeling forms in his gut as Dust turns his attention to Horror,”Horror,please lead the way”

The damaged skeleton loomed over the two but he simply gave a nod,gesturing with his hand for Dream to follow.Knowing that he was in dangerous territory he lays low and follows behind,trying to ignore the sharp twin-blade axe that Horror was dragging across the carpet floor.

After what seemed like walking through these lavish halls,the damaged monster eventually made a sudden stop causing Dream to bump right into his back before stumbling away.The two monsters stop at a purple door with a Red cross painted over it,nothing too out of the ordinary compared to the other doors he passed by.Horror pushes the door open before bringing his attention back to the lighter guardian,his red eye flickered in thought.

“Go in” was all he said.

Fears aside,Dream takes in a quick break before wandering in,the only source of light was from the crack in the door,everything was pitch black and making out the little details was proving itself to be a challenge.

Then the door behind him slammed shut,leaving him in complete darkness—panic immediately hits him,desperately trying to adjust to the darkness.

“Hey—!”

However Dream’s plea was cut off by a weak cough as he turned his head to the direction of the sound.

“Keep it Down..” the voice spoke,more recognizable now.

Dream blinked a few times to adjust,making out the shapes of furniture and the large monster figure laying in the bed.A weakly glowing cyan eye stared back at him.

He takes a few steps forward,“Nightmare?” 

“Oh…” his voice sounded distant and yet disproving,”it’s you”

The sound of the mattress creaks as the larger monster reaches out for something,then with a quiet click,a lamp lights up—casually blinding Dream in the process.

However once his eyes adjusted,one single glance at his brother caused him to gasp in horror.

Vicious dark murky vines engulfed half of Nightmare’s face,thorns digging into his skull and sides,blood dribbling down his chin as a few vines had grown through his nose—making his breathing rough and stuttery.

Dream could already feel tears begin to form as he examined more of his brother’s horrifying sickness,”Nightmare—what happened? How—?”

“It’s not a big deal” he tried to brush it off,only to cough up flower petals,”...maybe it is,so what? You’d be happy to see me dead”

“—I never said I want you dead!” He was quick to snap though he quickly quieted his tone when his brother flinched,”please just talk to me,maybe—maybe I can help you?”

The larger monster lets out a shuttery breath,”there’s no point,you know how the story goes,feelings from a unrequited crush must be confessed in order to cure it—now leave me be”

“You have feelings for someone?” He asked bluntly.

The larger monster didn’t respond.

“Nightmare”

Still no response,

“ _ Nightmare _ ”

“I said leave me be” he growled in annoyance as he rolled over,vines crunching and scraping the bed’s cover all the while Nightmare tried to not let the agony take over his face.

Dream let out a soft sigh,noting that his brother is now completely out cold,he decides to leave the room.Once the door shut behind him,he became so lost in his thoughts that he hadn’t noticed his brother’s crew until he looked up to see them staring back at him.

“Uh..” The lighter guardian was left uneasy by the others staring at him so he turned his attention to Dust,”how long has he been like that?”

“Only today,however, he did experience symptoms before it became more noticeable..” Dust notes,”fatigue,coughing,poor hand-eye coordination--just seemed like a bad flu to us”

He forced his mouth into a frown,”but now it’s s clear that he’s suffering from the Hanahaki Disease,”

“It’s quite apparent” Dream offhandedly comments,”but what does this have to do with me?”

“Like we have anyone else to turn to!” Killer snaps at the other,”we all thought you had at least some idea of who he likes!”

Dream raises his hands in defence,”woah,woah—are you sure he’s not into one of you guys?”

“ **Pfft as if!** ” Error retorts,placing his hands on his own hips,” **the only reason Nightmare keeps me around because I eat his trash** ”

“So it was you that ate my spare tires?” Horror lowly growls at the glitch.

“ **You have no proof** ”

Dust rolls his eyes,focusing his attention to Dream,”anyways—boss wouldn’t have a thing for me,the last time I jokingly flirted at him,he made me sleep on the couch—for a month”

The light guardian quirked his brow,”really?”

“Eh I’m okay with that,now me and Error just flirt with each other” the hooded skeleton puts it bluntly.

“Well that explains earlier” Dream thought to himself before bringing his attention to the stubborn eyeless skeleton staring him down,”what about you Killer?”

“He’s literally twelve” Horror butts in,placing his hand on the smaller one’s head,engulfing it entirely.

“I am _not!_ ” killer screeches as he attempts to pry the hand off his face.

“Anyways--not like the boss likes me” The taller monster comments,eyeing down Dream,”he’s never shown interest--the again,he’s never shown an interest in my cooking”

“Yeah because its shit!” Killer objected before his voice instantly got muffled by the hand.

The lighter guardian rubs his temple,letting out a sigh,”guys please--i honestly don’t know,i empathize the pain you’re all feeling but i don’t think i can help.”

He hated to say that,leaving a bitter taste in his mouth,the idea of his brother dying was twisting him up inside and he despises the fact that he couldn’t even do a thing about it.He never wanted his brother dead or even permanently injured,despite their long history of rivalry Dream could never really bring himself to truly hate his brother. He missed the days where it was just the two of them,staring into the sky with their backs against the freshly wet grass,getting their knees dirty from the grime of climbing large rocks or simply splashing each other down by the river.

Dream really missed those times.

“ **Well try to think back to the place you both lived** ” the glitch suggested,” **didn’t you two live in a cave?** ”

“A village” he corrected before taking a brief pause,”—Well tree,granted before...all of this happened he was still very much a private person,I had to coax him out to talking sometimes if it was bothering him that badly”

Killer manages to claw off the hand from his head,”how about you maybe use that golden touch of yours to get him back!”

“First of all,don’t call it that and secondly I can’t promise that it’ll work” Dream explained,”but I’ll try even if you guys don’t have much faith in me”

“Look your the only person we can turn to” Dust spoke,”we’re in a desperate situation”

And with that a somewhat temporary truce had been formed and they dispatched from the area except from Dust who stayed behind,though Dream couldn’t help but fear that if the situation did get out of hand that they might turn on him.A part of him was still trying to comprehend the situation at hand,after all he just assume that Nightmare was not the type of person to fall in love—in the past he might of had a few crushes here and there but they wore off pretty quickly.

All he could do is wait,letting out a sigh,he leans his head against the wall,the heel of his boot kicking the floor anxiously while he stared off into space—he wanted to help his brother,he really did,but it all comes down to if Nightmare wants it.

“Thinking?” Dust’s neutral tone snaps him out of his thoughts.

He glances at the other before looking back at the floor,”Yeah,it just kills me to see him like this”

“I feel you” he replies,”while we work in a more professional way,doesn’t mean we don’t care about each other—even if we drive each other nuts”

The lighter guardian lets out a small giggle,”like one big family I suppose “

He quickly realized that Dust wasn’t responding and turned to him,”Dust?”

Dust’s hoodie was noticeably covering up the rest of his face and glancing down to his hand shows them shaking,it hits Dream in what is really happening.

“Oh–Dust i—“ 

Dust lets out a shaky breath,which Dream quickly silences himself,unsure how to go about this.The hooded skeleton wipes away his tears with his sleeves before speaking up.

“Y-Yeah,One—big f-family” he manages to choke out,almost breaking into another fit of sobs upon saying those words.

Okay,Dream was definitely panicking a bit,knowing how unpredictable these guys can be,he wasn’t sure if comforting him would cause him to lash out and yet his compassionate side kept egging him on,urging him to step up.He hesitatingly places his gloved hand onto the other’s shoulder to which the hooded skeleton looks up slightly taken back but it,when he looks he sees a weak smile on Dream’s face.

“It’s gonna be okay” He wasn’t sure if that was a promise but he hated to see Dust in such a state.

Dust sniffs before giving back a weak smile,”y-yeah,I hope so”

It takes a bit of comfort but Dust manages to pull himself back together,just enough at least to check up on Nightmare.

“You should probably head in now” Dust informs,his voice still shaky but attempts to keep it neutral.

Dream simply nods back in reply,making his way to the door and yet his non-existent stomach twists remembering the state his brother was in,he wasn’t sure he could to it again.The lights in the room were seemed to been left on but at a dimmer level—Thankfully he could see the room a bit better.

He could make out the darker guardian’s body on the bed,as well as those twisted vines,Nightmare’s glowing eye pierced through his soul—even in such a weak state he still tries to put up a front.

However the lighter guardian doesn’t point it out,knowing he’ll be stubborn about it,”good to see that you’re awake once again”

“Not like I could get any sleep with that brat around” he groans under his breath,shuttering in a breath.

Knowing he’s referring to Killer,Dream continues to move forward and lays a hand on the mattress,”regardless of what you think of him,he cares about you—all of your crew do”

Nightmare doesn’t respond,as if he’s taking into consideration so Dream continues.

“Even if you drive each other mad,they all look up to you” He adds,a sense of melancholy could be hinted in his voice,”they don’t know what to do if you were gone”

His yellow eyes flickered to the ground for a brief moment,memories flashed of him and his brother together and how they would do anything for each other.A voice in his head was talking him that he was Probably projecting his feelings into the other yet he could understand their pain and fear of this situation,no matter what face they put on,they were all hurting on the inside.

Dream brings his attention back to Nightmare,who looked ready to slip into another unconscious state,he spoke softly but with a lot feeling,”they want to help but they can only do so much,I can only do so much—please just talk to us,we can possibly cure it if you tell us who it is”

As sluggish Nightmare was,upon hearing that phrase,he scrambled to sit upright,vines whipping everywhere like whips.

“Absolutely not—!” He snapped before going into another coughing fit,this time a clump of wet bloody petals came out his throat.

Dream instinctively placed his hands onto the other’s shoulders as he coughed a few more times before collapsing back onto his stomach in exhaustion—only then did he let go.

“Why can’t you?” Dream firmly demanded.

“I’ve looked into the mirror..” Nightmare heaved,”no person in the entire multiverse could ever— _love_ me”

The lighter guardian seemed to have paused for a brief moment,his body wanted to barf out some attempt at a sentence,yet he bit his tongue,feeling a sense of unease in his chest.Carefully he places one hand onto the other’s slimy back,rubbing small circles around it,avoiding touching the vines that grew out of his goop.It stayed like that for a while as neither of them spoke,yet the atmosphere felt tense than ever.

Finally,Nightmare lets out an annoyed groan,”damn gloves…”

“Do they hurt you?” He asked but didn’t get a response,the discomfort on the darker guardian’s face however seemed to be enough to get the point across.

He pulls his hand away and takes the glove off,exposing his boney fingers as they gently return to massaging the goop.Nightmare lets out a soft sigh of relief into the pillow,shoulders easing back into the mattress.Even if he could ease his brother’s worry,his own anxious thoughts seem to keep swirling in his own skull,he didn’t know how long he had with him and how that twisted feeling inside his bones were keeping him from speaking his mind—he wanted to say as much as he could with what time was left,yet his body and soul hesitated.

Noticing Nightmare’s more relaxed state,he couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle,thinking back to all the times he had to comfort him during the night,remembering the times his night terrors had gotten pretty bad and he had to comfort the other,his body snuggled against his as they shared the warmth during the cold nights and how Nightmare used to nuzzle into the crook of his next,his soft exhales sending shivers up his spine.

  
  


“Oh Nighty..”he softly sighs,trying not to disturb him,”I just want to help you,I don’t think you truly understand how much you mean to me..”

He pauses,watching Nightmare’s body slowly right and fall,”things really did hit hard for us as it seemed that fate had other plans but I never given up on you—even,even at your worse”

Memories of Nightmare staring at him with those doting eyes along with the brightest smile,sent fuzzy feelings into his soul,Remembering how close he held the other to the point of feeling his soul beat through his shirt—those thoughts only seemed to make his cheeks flush a bright yellow.

However he snapped out of his thoughts when Nightmare lets out a small cough before relaxing once more.Dream simply just stared,knowing that the weird feeling in his soul was both begging yet dreading to say the words,well it’s not like it’ll hurt to try.

“Despite everything that has ever happened to us—“ he hesitates once more before he finally decides to say it,screwing his eyes shut,”I still love you”

He peeps one eye open,still seeing Nightmare’s sleeping state,overgrown vines and all.He honestly didn’t know what to expect,he wasn’t even sure his brother was even awake to hear it—still did he really think Nightmare would return those feelings back? Highly doubt it,it wouldn’t even come as a shock if he ended up catching the disease.

A heavy sigh escapes him as he pulls back,putting his glove back on and slowly makes his way to the door.Dream grabs the knob yet doesn’t bring himself to open it,not knowing how to deal with the emotions wreck of the others but there’s nothing else he could do about it,just thinking that left a pretty bad taste in his mouth.His grip tightens on the knob,though he doesn’t turn it,instead he turns around to glance at Nightmare one last time.

But the bed was empty.

Suddenly his body was hit with panic,zipping himself right over to the bed,souls pounding through his chest as he saw the dead vines that leeched off his brother laying in the bed,he didn’t want to believe it was true—did he cause it? How will he explain it to the others? Why now?

He was definitely hyperventilating and shaking as he held the dead vine in his hands,tears beginning to blur his vision as he became more aware than Nightmare was truly gone and he couldn’t help him.

Yet before he could have a full mental breakdown,arms wrapped around his waist making him halt his breathing.

“Wah—“

“I love you too”

Nightmare’s voice rumbled in his non existent ears as he looked up to see the single eye glancing back at him,not a sight of vine on him—noting the fact that he looked quite exhausted.Too many emotions were flooding the lighter guardian as he seemed to be stuck between laughing and crying.

“O-oh Stars…” he manages to choke out while giggling,”I thought—I lost you..”

“Psst like a bunch of leaves can get rid of me” Nightmare brushes it off before nuzzling against Dream’s neck,”but still I’m glad you feel that way”

Dream wipes away a few of his tears,”should—should we tell the others?”

“Nah” he respond,”let’s make up an excuse that you got my crush on the phone or something”

“They’ll get oddly suspicious with they see us acting pretty calm” Dream adds.

Nightmare lets out a deep hum,”I’ll tell them you and I have a ‘truce’ since you were willing to help me”

“I guess that’ll be good enough,” he comments.

“Trust me it’ll work,while I do care for them,they all share the same brain cell” He sighs.

Dream rolls his eyes before pressing his head against the other,”very well but right now you should probably rest up more”

“Agree,once those parasitic plants came off me,I’m started to feel abit lightheaded” He adds,”however we should throw those things into the nearest trash”

The two broke apart as they began to scoop up the vines that littered his bed.Even if the adrenaline was beginning to die down inside Dream’s bones,his smile was the brightest it had ever been in a long time.


End file.
